Linda Rice | Horse Racing Free Tips

Connections Of Belmont Third Max Player ‘Leaning Towards’ Travers Rematch With Tiz The Law

George E. Hall and SportBLX Thoroughbreds' Max Player, who ran third in the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes on June 20, is being pointed towards the Grade 1, $1 million Runhappy Travers, trainer Linda Rice said.

Max Player, who finished only behind Dr Post and winner Tiz the Law in last month's first leg of the Triple Crown, registered his first breeze since the Belmont Stakes, going four furlongs in 49 seconds on Sunday over Belmont Park's dirt training track.

“He's doing very well. That was his first breeze since the Belmont and it was just a nice, comfortable breeze, and he's in good order,” Rice said.

Never off the board in four career starts, Max Player could next make his Saratoga debut by running in the “Mid-Summer Derby.” He made his first two starts at Parx, running second in his debut at one mile on November 12 before winning at the same distance at second asking on December 17.

In his sophomore debut, he bested an eight-horse field by 3 ¼ lengths in the 1 1/8-mile Grade 3 Withers on February 1 at Aqueduct Racetrack. That was his previous start since the Belmont Stakes, which was shortened from its famed 1 ½-mile distance to a one-turn 1 1/8 miles to accommodate the revised schedule for 3-year-olds in training.

With the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby set for September 5 and serving as the middle jewel of the Triple Crown this year, Max Player can accumulate even more qualifying points, with the Travers offering a 100-40-20-10 scale to the top-four finishers.

Max Player has accumulated 40 qualifying points for the “Run for the Roses” and is 12th on the current leaderboard for a race that has traditionally taken as many as 20 entries.

Contested at 1 1/4 miles, the Travers would be the longest race Max Player has run, but Rice said she is optimistic the Honor Code colt could handle it.

“We're leaning towards running in the Travers,” Rice said. “We looked at some other options with the [Grade 1] Haskell [at Monmouth] or the [Grade 3] Peter Pan [July 16 at Saratoga], but we are going to point right to the Travers.”

Wicked Trick, who finished fourth in the Grade 2 True North on June 27 at Belmont, will be getting a freshening after three races to start his 5-year-old campaign. The Hat Trick gelding won his seasonal bow against allowance company on January 20 at Aqueduct before running fifth in the Stymie on March 7.

After stepping up to graded stakes company for the first time in 23 career starts in the True North, Rice said she decided to give the Kentucky bred who she co-owns with Stephen Cooper a respite.

“He's just been a little dull lately, so I just sent him to the farm to give him some time off,” Rice said.

Rice has saddled four winners during the Belmont spring/summer meet, which started June 3 and will conclude on Sunday, July 12. She will gear up for the Saratoga meet that runs from July 16 through September 7. Rice has enjoyed success at the Spa, highlighted by the 2009 meet in which she captured the training title.

“I think we were all very happy to just get back to racing in these unusual times,” Rice said. “It's given a lot of relief to the horsemen and the owners so that we can maintain these horses in our stables. Saratoga will be unusual this year as well for sure, but we're just all happy to be back to racing.”

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Aftermath: Pletcher, Rice Ponder Next Starts For Belmont’s Second- And Third-Place Finishers

Trainer Todd Pletcher reported that Dr Post emerged from his game runner-up effort in Saturday's Grade 1 Belmont Stakes in good order, and that the son of Quality Road could be slated for more Grade 1 action.

Pletcher, a three-time winner of the Belmont, said the Grade 1 $1 million Haskell Invitational on July 18 at Monmouth Park or the Grade 1, $1 million Runhappy Travers on August 8 at Saratoga are both likely targets for the dark bay colt.

“Both of those races are in play. It just depends on how he bounces out of the race,” Pletcher said at his barn Sunday morning. “We were always confident that a route of ground will not be an issue for him. He finished up well. It was a very encouraging effort.”

Owned by Vinnie Viola's St. Elias Stable, Dr Post arrived at this year's first leg of the Triple Crown off a stakes triumph in the Unbridled at Gulfstream Park on April 25 after breaking his maiden over the South Florida oval just one day after Belmont Stakes winner Tiz the Law picked up a second Grade 1 victory in the Florida Derby.

“We always felt confident that a lot of ground won't be an issue for him. It was a very encouraging effort,” Pletcher said. “Considering he broke his maiden the day after Tiz the Law won the Florida Derby, that's a lot of progress to make in short period of time. Hopefully he keeps improving.”

Bred in Kentucky by Cloyce C. Clark, Dr Post is out the graded stakes-winning Hennessy broodmare Mary Delaney and was a $400,000 acquisition from the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, where he was consigned by Hunter Valley Farm.

Pletcher also debuted a potential rising star on Saturday afternoon in Wertheimer and Frere's Happy Saver, who graduated at first asking by 5 ½ lengths under Irad Ortiz, Jr.

“He had been training well,” Pletcher said. “We were looking forward to getting him started. I have to admit, the win was more impressive than I could have hoped for. It's always exciting when you have that. It surprised me when he showed as much as he did.”

The winning effort garnered an 89 Beyer Speed Figure.

Pletcher is not in any hurry to run the talented son of Super Saver against stakes company.

“There are plenty of options, so we'll let him take us where we need to go,” Pletcher said.

In the Belmont Stakes, Pletcher also saddled stakes-placed Farmington Road who finished a distant eighth and said that the track was tough to make up ground on Saturday.

“We'll have to find a track that's more kind to closers,” Pletcher said.

Third-Place Finisher Max Player Gains Valuable Experience

George E. Hall's Max Player rallied from second-last in the 10-horse field to finish third in the Belmont. Trainer Linda Rice said the Honor Code colt came out of his first race in four months in good order on Sunday morning.

“He came out good and looked good this morning; no problems,” Rice said.

Max Player, with Joel Rosario aboard, tracked in ninth position as Tap It to Win led the field through the opening quarter-mile in 23.11 seconds an the half in 46.16. While Tiz the Law made a strong move out of the turn that propelled him to his 3 ¾-length victory, Max Player went seven-wide from the upper stretch but kicked on impressively, besting Pneumatic by 2 ½ lengths to finish on the board.

“He was a little further back than I hoped,” Rice said. “I was hoping we'd have been a little closer early in the midpack. He had a lot to do because of that. He ran a little green into the kick-back once again. Joel had to circle pretty wide, but he was running at the end of it.”

Though showing some signs of inexperience, Max Player has been consistent, with a career record of 2-1-1 in four starts. The Kentucky bred ran second in his debut in November at Parx before ending his juvenile campaign with a maiden-breaking win at second asking in December at the same track.

In his stakes debut, he topped an eight-horse field to win the Grade 3 Withers by 3 ¼ lengths on February 1 at Aqueduct, registering an 86 Beyer for his victory in the Kentucky Derby prep race.

Making his first start off the layoff, Max Player earned a personal-best 92 Beyer for his effort in the one-turn, 1 1/8-mile Belmont Stakes.

“Coming off a 4 ½-month break, I thought it was a very creditable effort,” Rice said. “You can build on this going forward. Going a mile and a quarter shouldn't be a problem as well.”

Rice said she had no confirmed next steps yet for Max Player but will talk with Hall and come up with a plan. The Saratoga summer meet runs Thursday, July 16, through Monday, September 7, and includes multiple options for 3-year-olds on the main track, led by the Grade 1, $1 million Runhappy Travers at 1 ¼ miles on August 8 and also including the Grade 2, $150,000 Jim Dandy at 1 1/8 miles on September 5.

“We'll keep all the options open for now and sort it out when we get him back to the track in a week to 10 days,” Rice said.

Rice saddled her first Belmont Stakes entrant in 17 years, when Supervisor finished fifth in 2003. Already just one of 10 women to train a Belmont Stakes runner, Rice had the second-best finisher from that group, with only the Dianne Carpenter-trained Kingpost coming closer when second to Risen Star in 1988.

Despite being run at a shorter distance and without spectators, Rice said earning the black type in a Triple Crown race for the first time in her career was special. He also said Max Player showed the potential to possibly run in the Kentucky Derby on September 5 at Churchill and the Preakness on October 3 at Pimlico if things continue to go well.

“It was pretty exciting, it would have been more exciting if we had our typical crowd that could join us, but it was great and I think he ran well enough to show that he could possibly win a Classic in his future,” Rice said.

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Travers Up Next for Tiz the Law

Sackatoga Stable’s Tiz the Law (Constitution) exited his win in Saturday’s GI Belmont S. in fine shape and will now be pointed towards the Aug. 8 GI Runhappy Travers S.

“He came out of the race great,” said Robin Smullen, assistant to trainer Barclay Tagg. “He ate up and then he came out and grazed for an hour. His legs are good, his attitude and energy are good.”

Mapping out the next few days for the Belmont winner, Tagg said, “He’ll walk for three days and we’ll graze him every afternoon like we do. The fourth day we’ll take him out and jog him once around backwards to see how he moves and how he is and if he eats up that night, we’ll go to galloping. And 10 days after that we’ll give him an easy breeze, a half-mile.”

Tagg added, “I’ve never won the Travers and I want to win it. It’s very important to me.”

Trainer Todd Pletcher is considering the Travers and the July 18 GI Haskell S. at Monmouth Park as possible next targets for Belmont runner-up Dr Post (Quality Road).

“Both of those races are in play. It just depends on how he bounces out of the race,” Pletcher said. “We were always confident that a route of ground will not be an issue for him. He finished up well. It was a very encouraging effort.”

Dr Post was making just his fourth start in the Belmont, following a maiden win at Gulfstream Mar. 29 with a win in the 1 1/16-mile Unbridled S. in Hallandale Apr. 25.

“Considering he broke his maiden the day after Tiz the Law won the Florida Derby, that’s a lot of progress to make in a short period of time,” Pletcher said. “Hopefully he keeps improving.”

Trainer Linda Rice was satisfied with Max Player (Honor Code)’s third-place finish in the Belmont.

“Coming off a 4 1/2-month break, I thought it was a very creditable effort,” Rice said. “You can build on this going forward. Going a mile and a quarter shouldn’t be a problem as well.”

As for what could be next for the GIII Withers S. winner, Rice said, “We’ll keep all the options open for now and sort it out when we get him back to the track in a week to 10 days.”

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Not Even a Pandemic Can Push Rice Off Course

ELMONT, N.Y.–Linda Rice is as meticulous as they come in preparing her horses. The conditioner knows every detail about each and every horse in her care and maps out very specific plans for them. But, as organized as Rice is, she is equally as adaptable, as every horse trainer must be, and those qualities have served her well as she prepares Max Player (Honor Code) for a step up to the big leagues in an unconventional edition of the GI Belmont S. Saturday.

Max Player’s unique journey to the top started early on when he failed to meet his reserve at Keeneland September, RNAing for $150,000. Sent to Rice in late May of his 2-year-old season, the lanky bay did not show his trainer much in the mornings.

“As a 2-year-old, he was a bit of an enigma as he did not show much ability or talent,” Rice said from her beautifully decorated office beside Barn 44 at Belmont. “I had to explain to George Hall on multiple occasions that Max Player was making progress, but it was slow and steady. I really couldn’t tell him how much ability this horse had. We finally got him as far along as we could and we put him in a race at Parx, trying to give him an easier race to start out with, and he showed a big, closing kick, which he has done in all of his races at this point, like his father, Honor Code.”

The main word that could be used to describe Max Player’s Nov. 12 debut at Parx is green. Racing wide and at the back of the pack most of the way, the George Hall colorbearer came flying late to be second by a half-length. Back in at Parx Dec. 17 going a mile in the slop, Max Player made good on the promise he showed in his unveiling, unleashing a powerful late turn of foot to win going away by 4 1/4 lengths.

That victory gave Rice the confidence to run Max Player back home in New York, entering him in the Feb. 1 GIII Withers S. over nine furlongs at Aqueduct. Sitting off the pace again, but a bit closer than his previous races, the sophomore powered past his competition in deep stretch for a 3 1/4-length success (video).

After Max Player rallied to victory in the Withers, Rice had her eye on the GII Wood Memorial S. in early April, choosing to take the New York route to the GI Kentucky Derby. While Rice’s star colt certainly had her dreaming of roses, he also had her thinking further ahead to the Test of a Champion. However, the leading conditioner did not envision that this would be the route she would take to get there.

Enter COVID-19. Racing was halted in New York in mid-March and the entire world was put on pause. This forced Rice to not only call an audible, but to call them just about daily as the pandemic kept racing in a state of constant fluctuation.

“After we won the Withers, we were pointing towards the Wood Memorial,” Rice said. “It would have given him a two-month break and it was run on the same track, Aqueduct, where he won the Withers and was at a mile and an eighth. That was canceled because of the pandemic and we were training towards something.”

The horsewoman continued, “With racing canceled in New York, we discussed going to the [GI] Arkansas Derby [May 22] and the [GIII] Matt Winn [S. May 23], but elected to wait for racing to open up in New York. It looks like there will be a lot of opportunity from this point forward and we didn’t want to travel our horse and wear him out before then.”

Racing finally returned to the Empire State June 3 and the Belmont was pushed from its original June 6 date to June 20. In addition, it was shortened from 1 1/2 miles to 1 1/8 miles. In keeping with the topsy turvy nature of 2020, the Belmont had also now become the first leg of the Triple Crown instead of the last as the GI Kentucky Derby was moved to Sept. 5 and the GI Preakness S. was pushed to Oct. 3.

“I think he will be fine at1 1/8 miles and I think he would have been fine at 1 1/2 miles,” Rice said. “But coming off a five-month layoff, I am glad it is 1 1/8 miles. I think that is a distance that more horses are able to compete at.”

Max Player will break from post three on Saturday with Joel Rosario in the irons for the first time. Rosario looks for back-to-back Belmont wins after capturing last year’s renewal with Sir Winston (Awesome Again). He also won the race in 2014 with Tonalist (Tapit).

“I think Joel is going to fit the horse very well,” Rice said. “Joel has won a lot of Grade Is and most of them have been at a route of ground. He won the Belmont last year with Sir Winston and a few years back with Tonalist. So, I think he fits this horse really well. He is very good on a strong closer.”

Max Player will still be coming from behind in Saturday’s test, but, Rice said she believes he will be closer than he was in his past races. The colt has matured into his large frame, making him quite impressive to look at, and has also made quite a bit of progress in his training during quarantine. He enters the Belmont off a six-furlong breeze on the main track in 1:12.25 June 13.

“I am hoping they will set an honest pace in front of him,” Rice said. “I don’t think he will be as far back as he was in his earlier races. He has more tactical speed than he used to.”

Rice has been asked many times over the past week what it would be like to be the first woman to win a Triple Crown race. While Rice has been breaking down doors for females in the racing industry for decades, such as becoming the first woman to win a Saratoga training title and the first to win a Grade I at Keeneland, the third-generation conditioner prefers to focus on what a Belmont victory would mean for her as a trainer.

“Everyone would love to be on the Triple Crown trail, man or woman,” said Rice, who secured her 2,000th win in January. “It is very exciting to have a horse you really want to run and that you know can get the distance. I’ve won seven training titles in New York, but I’ve never won a Triple Crown race, so we are hoping to get that done.”

At the Belmont draw Wednesday, Rice said they had just not given women enough time to win a Triple Crown race. But, with Rice’s knowledge and diligence and Max Player’s ever-improving talent, the time may just be now.

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